Suggestions for a neophyte whisk(e)y drinker

I'm a bit ashamed to admit that at 31, my experience with whisk(e)ys is fairly limited. I know there are a lot of folks on this forum who do enjoy them quite a bit and so I'm hoping for perhaps a nudge in the right direction. I enjoy vodka and gin but I've found other spirits to be somewhat less approachable. However, I'd like to gain an appreciation for them if possible because I feel I'm missing out.

I've had bourbon in mixed drinks but never really by itself (mostly Jack Daniel's, perhaps Maker's Mark once or twice). Scotch, single malt - I don't remember what exactly it was that I drank but it seemed like pretty harsh stuff. Blended, I've had Johnnie Walker on the rocks a few times. On the Irish side, I've tasted Jameson's a few times and it seemed pretty smooth. Canadian, I think I've had Crown on the rocks once or twice, not bad.

I've heard that bourbon drinkers and scotch drinkers tend to be mutually exclusive but I have no idea if there's any truth to that.

I'm going to try to put a little bar together for myself and so I'm looking for recommendations on brands that would be a good introduction to the various whisk(e)ys out there, as well as recommendations on how to drink them (neat? on the rocks? branch water? mixed?) Teach me, o gurus!

mental said:

I've heard that bourbon drinkers and scotch drinkers tend to be mutually exclusive but I have no idea if there's any truth to that.

Click to expand...

No. I enjoy them both.

For a good bourbon to get the feel for, I strongly recommend Woodford Reserve. Not cheap, but not crazy expensive either. Smooth, well balanced. Not too sweet. Great stuff. I drink it either neat or over ice.

If your experience with scotch was that it seemed harsh, I would start with a smoother, milder highland or speyside malt, not the smoky islay and island ones. My recommendation is Balvanie 10 year. Wonderful, kinda honeyed flavor. Very smooth and approachable. (Btw, the 12 year doublewood is more common. Try to find the 10 instead. Or the 15, but that is a little expensive for starters.) I usually drink scotch neat, but you can also drink it with just a hint of water, for more flavor.

Btw, I can't believe you find Gin accessible.....

-Mo

Re: gin, I didn't expect it to be accessible either but the first time I took a sip (straight from the bottle, no less!) I immediately liked it. I don't even remember what brand it was, as it was perhaps 10 years ago. Go figure...

Also, thanks for the advice, that's exactly the sort of thing I was hoping for.

Starter malts:

Glenfiddich 12
Glenlivet 12
Scapa 14
Knockando (age varies)
Tobermory 10
Glenmorangie 10

mental said:

Re: gin, I didn't expect it to be accessible either but the first time I took a sip (straight from the bottle, no less!) I immediately liked it. I don't even remember what brand it was, as it was perhaps 10 years ago. Go figure...

Click to expand...

Must not be the same stuff I first tried. From a bottle also. A plastic bottle, if that tells you anything. I think it was Gilby's or something like that. Tasted like drinking pine needles.

-Mo

I'll post back later with more info, but I want to dispel the myth of if you like bourbon, you don't like Scotch or vice versa. This is a total fallacy, every serious whisky drinker I know of enjoys both.

Secondly, IMO here are you best starter products:

Buffalo Trace Bourbon - 90 proof, 4 year old Kentucky Straight bourbon, it's a great product at a reasonable price of $16, gives an excellent representation of a what a good bourbon should be.

Glenlivet 12 Single Malt Scotch - 80 proof, 12 year old, Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky. Runs around $30, light on peat and mild on general flavor. A good product in it's own right, but excellent for the beginner.

For more information, also check the reviews section, I've reviewed several Bourbons and Scotches in the Speakeasy Reviews Section.

Tim,

Can I just reiterate how much your avatar/title combo cracks me up?

-Mo

TimmyBoston said:

I'll post back later with more info, but I want to dispel the myth of if you like bourbon, you don't like Scotch or vice versa. This is a total fallacy, every serious whisky drinker I know of enjoys both.

Click to expand...

A big +1

I don't know where this silly notion came from. Its like saying there are tea drinkers and there are coffee drinkers and never the twain shall meet. Someone might, as people usually do, prefer one over the other but, as TimmyBoston pointed out, serious whiskey drinkers don't usualy drink one and never the other.

I second the recommendation of Buffalo trace. Dalmore 12 is a good scotch for a beginner. Its a highland malt and has that Honey/heather quality without too much peat.

The browns (whisk(e)ys) are all good.
I have been exploring the blended scotches (White Horse, Ballentines, William Grant, Johnny Black in rotation) but have collected a few bourbons (Makers Mark, Jim Beam Black, Woolfords, Gentleman Jack all in current inventory.)
Jameson's is very smooth.
If you have like minded friends why don't you have a whiskey party...have everyone bring a different bottle and hold a tasting.

George Dickel No12 better (smoother) than JD Great Straight
Knob Creek This just makes my tongue go wild with all its flavor.



==Tom

If you can get your hands on a bottle of Lagavulin, you will be holding the smoothest whisky I know of. Cut it with around 10-20% water, and leave the ice in the bucket.

For a vey different style of whisky, try Laphroaig. Strong, peaty, smokey flavor. You either love it or if you don't, please send it to me.

BTW, I learned not to order a good whisky in bars where they keep the bottle hanging upside down and use one of those bulb spirit pouring measures. If it's not a popular drink and the bottle's been there for a while, the flavor will go off (something to do with the air flowing in I was told by a barkeep who appeared to know his stuff).

TimmyBoston said:

I'll post back later with more info, but I want to dispel the myth of if you like bourbon, you don't like Scotch or vice versa. This is a total fallacy, every serious whisky drinker I know of enjoys both.

Secondly, IMO here are you best starter products:

Buffalo Trace Bourbon - 90 proof, 4 year old Kentucky Straight bourbon, it's a great product at a reasonable price of $16, gives an excellent representation of a what a good bourbon should be.

Glenlivet 12 Single Malt Scotch - 80 proof, 12 year old, Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky. Runs around $30, light on peat and mild on general flavor. A good product in it's own right, but excellent for the beginner.

For more information, also check the reviews section, I've reviewed several Bourbons and Scotches in the Speakeasy Reviews Section.

Click to expand...

You can't beat those recommendations. Both are much better than their price tag would have you believe.

I don't know about the rest of these guys but whisky was my first, longest lasting, and most expensive acquisition disorder. Let me start out by making two very definative statements that I believe are 100% but may get some arguements:

1. There is no mutual exclusivity to whiskies. Any true aficionado can find positive things to say about any type of whisk(e)y whether it's Bourbon, Tennessee, American, Canadian, Scotch (single malt, vatted, & blended), Irish, or Japanese. That's not to say that there aren't stinkers in each category but don't be more afraid of any one over the other. Given enough time, I can find a bourbon for any scotch drinker and vice versa. That doesn't mean you have to like them all, but don't be bullied away from the experience of deciding that for yourself.

2. There is no "correct" way to drink your whisk(e)y. Try them every which way you can. I'm personally a no water no ice guy but try them water, neat, on the rocks, or in a mixed drink if you want. Don't let "rules" bind your discovery.

As for good starting drinks....for bourbon I would have to agree with Buffalo Trace. IMHO, it is the best value/quality proposition in bourbon right now. Just don't tell too many people that. As a vodka drinker, Jameson or Bushmills should be pretty aproachable. Irish whiskey tends to be easier on vodka drinkers because it's "smoother" from more distillations. But personally I think that's a matter of individual tastes. They all have a starting brand and a number of higher end bottlings but they are also available at most bars so you can get a glass before deciding to buy a bottle. Canadian, i don't personally like (just me here) so I'll leave that to more experienced drinkers to comment on. Scotch...it depends. The easier to drink ones (The Glenlivet 12 yr & Glenfiddich) I don't personally care that much for because they don't have nearly the flavor of more robust scotches (Highland Park 12, Lagavulin 12 or 16 yr). I'd maybe try in the middle of the value vs taste vs ease chart and go with something like a Macallan 10 yr Fine Oak.

These are just my opinions. Regardless of what you go with, my advice on whisk(e)y is similar shaving products. Try as many as you can and find what YOU like.

I found The Balvenie Double Wood 12 year to be an excellent introduction to whisky. Great advice above as well.

Dennis

Whatever you do, dont start with the Glenlivet 18. It is by far my favorite, but an expensive habit. I find it to be smoother and woodsier, with less peat than other scotches. My other goto scotch is the Craganmore. I think it tastes far beyond its price tag.

Also, I have heard great things about the Compass Box scotchs. Apparently, the lead taster of JW left to start his own business.

Of course, YMMV. What scotch you like the best is equivalent to which blade works best in your razor.. ;-)

I make ice cubes in yogurt containers (the small ones). I fill it about a third way with filtered water cover them with the cover and keep a stack of them in my freezer. The one large resulting cube melts more slowly and therefore minimizing the dillution of the drink.

Its generally warm in Hawaii so when I am drinking I like a little chill in my scotch without watering it down too much.

However, when I am tasting I taste it neat first, then I add a small splash of water and retaste.

I would recommend that you pick up a copy of http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/07...104-8654368-2130364?s=books&v=glance&n=283155. This is a wonderful general guide to all sorts of whiskey and whiskey, from Scotch to Irish to Japanese to Bourbon. There are articles about all aspects of whiskey production and consumption and about the different distillation areas and a selection of tasting notes.

There are so many different styles of whiskey that there can be no single answer about how to enjoy it. A light-bodied, clean Irish whiskey might be appropriate as an aperitif, a smoky, peaty Islay Scotch may be more appropriate after dinner with a cigar.

A few other random thoughts:

1. Older whiskies aren't necessarily better than younger whiskeys. An old whiskey can be dried out, dominated by wood, and unpleasant.

2. More expensive whiskies aren't necessarily better than less expensive whiskies. I've had excellent whiskey that cost less than $20 per bottle, and I've had unpleasant whiskey that cost more than $50 per bottle.

3. Single malt whiskies aren't necessarily better than blended or vatted whiskies. Johnnie Walker Black Label, a blended Scotch, could destroy a significant number of single-malt Scotches. Black Bottle, another blended Scotch, is one of the finest whiskies that you'll find anywhere.

4. A whiskey does not have to have big body and intense flavor to be good. Islay Scotches and other peated whiskies get a lot of attention nowadays, and a lot of that attention is appropriate. But it is a mistake to think that lighter-bodied lighter-flavored whiskies cannot be as excellent in their own way as the Islays.

5. It's okay to dilute whiskey for drinking if that's how you like it. There is nothing impure or wimpy about not drinking your whiskey neat. In fact, the addition of a bit of water can help to release flavors and aromas in the whiskey.

6. Try a lot of different whiskies, and drink what you enjoy. Scotch snobs like to turn up their noses at Glenlivet, for example, but if you like it, you should drink it.

Old Grand Dad Bonded 100 proof. Great stuff. Ohh so smooth.

Jim Murray's Whiskey Bible is also very good. He has extensive tasting notes on blends (which he is an advocate for since all original Whiskeys were blends) and browns from around the world.

Blantons and Wild Turkey are my favorite bourbons. I like the lower proof WT in particular. I am also just getting into Scotch and enjoy it a lot.